NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
Page 2A
Tuesday, September 12, 2017
Loophole makes it tough to follow
money in Oregon campaigns
pass-through contributions.
“That would be a really
difficult thing to do,” said
Jennifer Hertel, a compliance
specialist and lead worker on
the campaign finance team at
the Secretary of State’s office.
Hertel said the Legislature
has a strong hand in what
her office is working on.
So, until regulation requires
they expand to that level of
transparency, it’s unlikely to
happen.
By COOPER GREEN
Statesman Journal
SALEM — Oregon’s
campaign finance law was
built around a tradeoff.
Any donor — whether
in-state, out-of-state, special
interest or corporate — can
give unlimited amounts of
cash to any state candidate
as long as there is complete
transparency. This keeps citi-
zens informed and candidates
aware their actions are public.
But there’s a hole in the
system.
The public can only see
single transactions on the
state’s website and in public
records. If a candidate passes
contributions to another candi-
date, or to a re-election fund
for fellow party members, the
public can no longer see the
money’s original donor.
These transactions are
known as pass-throughs
— contributions that are
essentially donations from one
legislator to another, allowed
in unlimited quantity under
Oregon law.
Critics, including past and
present lawmakers, say this
allows a loophole in transpar-
ency.
Consider one example. In
April 2016, Citizen Action
for Political Education, an
election-focused division of
the public employees union
SEIU, donated $10,000 to
House Speaker Tina Kotek’s
campaign fund. In August
2016, Kotek moved $30,000
to Future PAC House Builders,
a pool fund designed to help
elect Democrat candidates.
It fulfilled this duty in late
October by sending $8,500
to Ray Lister in a last-ditch
effort to help him overcome
Republican Richard Vial.
The public can see each
individual transaction on the
Secretary of State’s website,
but they can’t see the web
that connects them. There’s
no way to tell whether it was
CAPE money that funded
Lister’s campaign, some of
Kotek’s, or both.
The finance database
doesn’t track money once it
moves through more than one
committee or campaign fund,
and candidates aren’t required
to disclose original sources for
“The subterfuge
creates an
environment
where the power
becomes more
and more
concentrated.”
— Edwin Bender,
National Institute
on Money in Politics
“Until you have something
like that as a mechanism to
require it, the resources are
going to be used for other
things,” she said.
Transactions
between
legislators, or between legisla-
tors and re-election funds, are
commonplace and have been
for decades.
Statesman Journal analysis
of campaign finance shows
that legislative officeholders
and candidates have utilized
this system of pass-throughs
more than 2,800 times in the
last three election cycles alone,
transferring $18.7 million
dollars between themselves.
Based on the total amount
contributed to legislators
during that time, this means
that more than a quarter of all
money involved in legislative
campaigns has seen more than
one lawmaker as it moves
through the system.
Legislators point out this
collecting and distributing of
funds is legal under Oregon’s
campaign finance laws. They
say it helps strengthen their
party, and thereby its financial
supporters.
Critics argue that pass-
throughs hide the original
source of funds from Oregon
citizens, centralize power
within the legislative leader-
ship, and prevent donors from
knowing whether their money
actually went toward their
intended cause.
Not all the critics are
outside the capitol.
“I’ve known about that
practice for a long time,
although I do not engage in
it,” said Sen. Betsy Johnson,
D-Scappoose, who has served
in the Legislature for more
than 15 years. “What surprises
me is the amount. When I
learned the aggregate amount
it was jaw-dropping.”
Although nearly every
Oregon legislator utilizes
pass-throughs during election
season, party leaders do the
heavy lifting.
In the Statesman Journal
analysis, House Speaker
Tina Kotek, D-Portland,
and House Minority Leader
Mike McLane, R-Powell
Butte, each accounted for
$1.4 million of pass-throughs.
Senate leadership followed
suit, with Senate President
Peter Courtney, D-Salem, and
Senate Republican Leader
Ted Ferrioli, R-John Day, each
passing through more than
$700,000.
All told, these four legisla-
tors accounted for 23 percent
of all funds passed through
since 2011. If you factor in the
Political Action Committees
these leaders control, their
total rises further.
Four major PACs, called
caucus or leadership commit-
tees, collect funds from donors
as well as other legislators
and disperse the money to
candidates during campaign
season. A committee exists for
each party in the House and
the Senate.
The same four legislators
— Courtney, Ferrioli, Kotek
and McLane — are in charge
of the committees.
This isn’t surprising to
those who understand one of
the major purposes of pass-
throughs — to consolidate and
disperse influence.
“The subterfuge creates an
environment where the power
becomes more and more
concentrated,” said Edwin
Bender, executive director of
the nonpartisan National Insti-
tute on Money in Politics, a
nonprofit which compiles and
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PORTLAND (AP) — Police said they made seven
arrests as they clashed with anti-fascist protesters in
Portland on Sunday.
Hundreds of people turned out to oppose a much
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group. The Portland Police Bureau credited the main
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Hiker missing after 800-foot fall
TILLAMOOK (AP) — A hiker from British Columbia
is missing in Oregon after falling 800 feet from a cliff near
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The Oregon State Police said Monday that search teams
recovered the backpack of 51-year-old Joseph McDonald
Lescene in the water Monday but have not found him.
A second hiker, 42-year-old Sarah Jones Lescene, was
not injured.
Nearby hikers heard her screams and called 911. No
foul play is suspected.
Devil’s Cauldron is a sheer promontory along Oregon’s
Pacific Coast that is on a rugged oceanside trail popular
with hikers.
It is about 90 miles northwest of Portland.
Blogger ordered to remove names of
Bundy informants he outed
PORTLAND (AP) — A federal judge gave a blogger
until noon Wednesday to delete information he published
about confidential informants who helped law enforcement
during last year’s takeover of a national wildlife refuge in
Oregon.
In an opinion posted late last week, U.S. District Judge
Anna Brown found Gary Hunt in civil contempt of a court
order. She said Hunt faces “coercive sanctions” if he does
not comply with the deadline.
Hunt, 71, of Los Molinos, California, has been ignoring
a cease-and-desist letter he received Jan. 5. At a hearing
last month in Portland, Hunt argued his case, but said he
would comply with the judge’s order if she ruled against
him.
Dozens of people, including nine informants, occupied
the remote Malheur National Wildlife Refuge from
Jan. 2 to Feb. 11, 2016. Led by Ammon Bundy, they
were protesting federal control of public lands and the
imprisonment of two ranchers.
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Police arrest anti-fascist protesters
makes available campaign
finance data from around
the country. “The power
dynamic shifts more toward
the incumbents, more towards
the lobbyists and away from
people.”
When asked about the
practice, legislative leaders
declined to discuss it. McLane
didn’t respond to nine
requests for comment. Kotek,
Courtney and Ferrioli all
declined to answer questions,
but their offices provided
written statements.
Kotek’s office defended the
practice as legal. “I’m invested
in the effort to recruit and elect
strong local leaders to the
Oregon House of Representa-
tives,” Kotek’s statement read.
“My supporters know that,
and all campaign transactions
are posted online and fully
available to the public.”
In Courtney’s statement,
he said passing campaign
cash from his account to other
candidates is part of his job as
a legislative leader.
“When people give to
my campaign committee,
they know it’s possible their
donation will be used for that
purpose and it is permitted
under Oregon law,” the state-
ment said.
Ferrioli’s office called the
issue a “distraction” during
the legislative session and
declined to discuss it. Ferrioli
also did not respond to a
request for comment after the
session ended in July.
Pass-throughs help legisla-
tive leaders centralize power,
Bender said. Lawmakers with
the most clout can distribute
money to the candidates
they choose. In turn, those
candidates are indebted to the
party and its leadership. This
can make a difference when
it comes time to cast a vote.
Because pass-throughs make
the money trail invisible to
citizens, there’s no way to tell
what alliances may exist.
Phil Keisling, a former
Oregon secretary of state
and state representative, said
consolidation of influence
contributes to a larger
problem with unlimited
campaign
contributions:
Voters lose their voice when
candidates can turn to a select
few for their money.
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REGIONAL CITIES
Forecast
TODAY
WEDNESDAY
Hazy sun and
smoky
Cooler with clouds
and sun
90° 57°
77° 49°
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
Partly sunny
Partly sunny
SATURDAY
Sunny and nice
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
69° 51°
70° 44°
73° 47°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
79° 50°
93° 59°
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
LOW
87°
80°
100° (1899)
50°
51°
32° (1904)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
0.00"
Trace
0.17"
11.37"
7.69"
8.55"
HERMISTON
through 3 p.m. yesterday
TEMPERATURE
HIGH
Yesterday
Normals
Records
LOW
87°
81°
98° (1944)
47°
50°
33° (2012)
PRECIPITATION
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
0.00"
0.00"
0.12"
6.65"
5.40"
6.24"
SUN AND MOON
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
Last
New
Sep 12
Sep 19
6:30 a.m.
7:12 p.m.
11:27 p.m.
1:39 p.m.
First
Full
Sep 27
74° 44°
76° 40°
Seattle
74/54
ALMANAC
Yesterday
Normals
Records
74° 49°
Oct 5
Today
Spokane
Wenatchee
84/54
85/58
Tacoma
Moses
77/49
Lake
Pullman
Aberdeen Olympia
Yakima 89/55
86/54
68/51
77/46
91/53
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
78/50
89/62 Lewiston
92/58
Astoria
90/59
67/51
Portland
Enterprise
Hermiston
81/53
Pendleton 85/47
The Dalles 93/59
90/57
91/59
La Grande
Salem
87/48
85/51
Albany
Corvallis 87/49
85/49
John Day
89/54
Ontario
Eugene
Bend
89/60
85/50
87/49
Caldwell
Burns
89/61
86/45
Astoria
Baker City
Bend
Brookings
Burns
Enterprise
Eugene
Heppner
Hermiston
John Day
Klamath Falls
La Grande
Meacham
Medford
Newport
North Bend
Ontario
Pasco
Pendleton
Portland
Redmond
Salem
Spokane
Ukiah
Vancouver
Walla Walla
Yakima
Hi
67
87
87
73
86
85
85
88
93
89
84
87
85
89
65
67
89
91
90
81
89
85
84
87
83
89
91
Lo
51
46
49
57
45
47
50
57
59
54
47
48
46
56
49
51
60
55
57
53
45
51
54
46
52
62
53
W
pc
s
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
t
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
s
pc
pc
s
pc
s
pc
pc
s
pc
pc
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
Wed.
Hi
66
79
75
70
83
76
73
75
79
80
82
76
73
80
63
65
87
79
77
72
77
73
72
74
71
76
78
Lo
48
37
39
52
38
44
45
48
50
47
42
41
40
48
48
49
55
46
49
52
36
48
47
41
50
53
45
W
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
WORLD CITIES
Today
Beijing
Hong Kong
Jerusalem
London
Mexico City
Moscow
Paris
Rome
Seoul
Sydney
Tokyo
Hi
86
94
92
64
72
75
65
76
79
83
84
Lo
64
78
69
52
48
59
55
59
57
65
75
W
s
s
s
pc
pc
pc
pc
s
s
pc
sh
Wed.
Hi
87
92
90
62
74
74
64
77
76
88
85
Lo
66
79
69
48
55
53
51
61
56
52
71
W
pc
s
s
t
pc
sh
r
s
s
s
pc
WINDS
Medford
89/56
(in mph)
Klamath Falls
84/47
Boardman
Pendleton
REGIONAL FORECAST
Eastern Washington: Hazy sun today;
smoky. Partly cloudy tonight; smoky. Times
of clouds and sun tomorrow.
Cascades: Sunshine mixing with clouds
and very warm today; smoky. Partly cloudy
tonight; smoky.
Northern California: Sun and clouds today
with a thunderstorm in spots; very warm in
central parts.
Wednesday
WSW 7-14
W 8-16
UV INDEX TODAY
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
Coastal Oregon: Partly sunny today, but
increasing clouds across the north. Mostly
cloudy tonight.
Eastern and Central Oregon: Clouds and
sun today; a thunderstorm in spots in the
south and central parts.
Western Washington: Mostly sunny today.
Rather cloudy tonight. Clouds and sunshine
tomorrow.
Today
WSW 4-8
W 6-12
1
3
5
5
3
1
8 a.m. 10 a.m. Noon 2 p.m. 4 p.m. 6 p.m.
0-2, Low
3-5, Moderate 6-7, High;
8-10, Very High;
11+, Extreme
The higher the AccuWeather.com UV Index™ num-
ber, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.
Forecasts and graphics provided by
AccuWeather, Inc. ©2017
Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day.
-10s
-0s
showers t-storms
0s
10s
rain
20s
flurries
30s
40s
snow
ice
50s
60s
cold front
70s
80s
90s
100s
warm front stationary front
110s
high
low
National Summary: Rain from Irma will stretch from the lower Mississippi and Ohio valleys
to the mid-Atlantic today. Showers and storms will dot the West. The balance of the country
can expect a dry day.
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 107° in Thermal, Calif.
Low 32° in Saranac Lake, N.Y.
NATIONAL CITIES
Today
Albuquerque
Atlanta
Atlantic City
Baltimore
Billings
Birmingham
Boise
Boston
Charleston, SC
Charleston, WV
Chicago
Cleveland
Dallas
Denver
Detroit
El Paso
Fairbanks
Fargo
Honolulu
Houston
Indianapolis
Jacksonville
Kansas City
Las Vegas
Little Rock
Los Angeles
Hi
89
67
77
75
91
64
90
85
83
76
77
80
85
87
78
94
61
90
88
88
72
87
82
100
65
84
Lo
64
59
64
61
61
56
63
62
67
60
59
63
65
61
61
69
46
61
73
67
60
67
57
78
59
66
W
s
r
pc
pc
s
r
pc
s
pc
r
pc
pc
s
pc
pc
s
pc
s
r
s
r
pc
s
pc
r
pc
Wed.
Hi
91
78
77
78
83
70
85
80
85
81
73
80
91
89
76
98
63
89
87
91
68
86
84
96
78
77
Lo
63
62
68
63
52
60
55
66
71
61
57
61
69
58
59
72
46
62
74
70
56
71
62
69
61
62
W
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
c
pc
s
pc
c
c
pc
s
pc
sh
s
c
pc
sh
pc
r
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
Today
Hi
Louisville
73
Memphis
64
Miami
91
Milwaukee
75
Minneapolis
84
Nashville
67
New Orleans
82
New York City
82
Oklahoma City
81
Omaha
87
Philadelphia
81
Phoenix
108
Portland, ME
81
Providence
86
Raleigh
76
Rapid City
91
Reno
87
Sacramento
89
St. Louis
77
Salt Lake City
91
San Diego
79
San Francisco
78
Seattle
74
Tucson
103
Washington, DC 75
Wichita
86
Lo
60
61
77
59
63
58
65
66
59
62
64
84
54
58
63
58
58
62
61
68
69
63
54
75
66
61
W
r
r
s
s
s
r
s
pc
s
s
pc
s
s
s
r
s
t
pc
r
pc
pc
pc
s
s
pc
s
Wed.
Hi
66
72
90
73
85
64
84
80
88
90
78
107
79
83
84
92
85
82
72
87
76
74
68
101
81
92
Lo
59
64
78
58
64
59
69
68
62
65
68
82
57
64
66
57
57
59
59
65
66
61
52
74
67
63
Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain,
sf-snow flurries, sn-snow, i-ice.
W
r
r
pc
pc
s
r
s
pc
s
s
pc
s
s
pc
pc
pc
pc
pc
c
pc
pc
pc
pc
s
pc
s